Recent Florida NCAA champion in Korn Ferry contention at Wichita Open golf tournament

Taylor Eldridge
·9 min read
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How daring a golfer is feeling is put to the test on the tee shot on No. 7 at Crestview Country Club’s North course.

Play it safe down the fairway and it’s about a 190-yard approach shot to the green. For those feeling more adventurous, a shortcut with much closer access to the dog-leg left hole by making the approximately 300-yard carry over the water.

On Friday, in the second round of the Wichita Open, Ricky Castillo was feeling adventurous. The problem was his drive landed on the edge of the pond, leaving his ball “halfway underwater.” It turns out, Castillo was feeling even more adventurous.

“I told my caddie, ‘It’s playable, I can get it out,’” Castillo said. “I was thinking worst-case scenario I can make a (bogey), it’s not a big deal. I ended up within six feet and making birdie.

“Honestly, that’s one of the best shots I’ve hit in a long time.”

Castillo followed his jaw-dropping up-and-down with a 40-foot birdie the next hole, a pivotal swing that allowed him to fire an 8-under round of 62 on Friday to move into contention with a total score of 11-under, one stroke back from the lead, following the second round of the Wichita Open.

The round of 62 was the low score of the day on Friday and was one shot off the tournament record. Not a bad start to his professional career on the Korn Ferry Tour, a little more than two weeks after helping lead Florida to an NCAA team championship.

“I kept it in play and gave myself a lot of chances,” Castillo said. “I hit 16 greens, I think, struck the ball really solid and had some putts go in today. It was a nice way to finish the round.”

The four golfers tied atop the leaderboard at 12-under are Adrien Dumont de Chassart, Brandon Hagy, Kyle Jones and Chan Kim. Dumont de Chassart, a recent Illinois graduate, won in his professional debut last week at the BMW Charity Pro-Am and is vying to join Ben Kohles (2012) as the only player to win their first two starts on the Korn Ferry Tour.

The cut line of 5-under is tied for the second-lowest cut line at the Wichita Open in the tournament’s 34-year history, while the total score of 135 is the lowest cut line in the 34-year history of the Korn Ferry Tour.

Friday’s crowd at the No. 17 party hole was even more lively than Thursday, as a double-decker of stands behind the green provided a constant buzz in the air with fans cheering for caddies racing to the green and birdies.

Castillo was among the earliest tee times on Friday and play the back-nine first, so he didn’t receive the full Wichita Open experience yet. He said he’s looking forward to it this weekend.

“I’ve heard some things about it, but I’m just excited to see it for myself when it’s in full effect,” Castillo said. “It’s an awesome experience being out here. It’s a great golf course and a lot of great people here.”

Korn Ferry Tour Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas Wichita Open

Friday, in Wichita; at Crestview Country Club

Second round, par 70

Player

R1

R2

Tot

Par

R3 tee time

Kyle Jones

62

66

128

-12

12:13 p.m.

Adrien Dumont de Chassart

64

64

128

-12

12:13 p.m.

Chan Kim

64

64

128

-12

12:01 p.m.

Brandon Hagy

65

63

128

-12

12:13 p.m.

Ricky Castillo

67

62

129

-11

12:01 p.m.

Jimmy Stanger

64

66

130

-10

11:49 a.m.

José de Jesús Rodríguez

64

66

130

-10

11:49 a.m.

Patrick Fishburn

66

64

130

-10

12:01 p.m.

Sung Kang

67

63

130

-10

11:49 a.m.

Chandler Phillips

66

64

130

-10

11:37 a.m.

Cody Blick

65

66

131

-9

11:13 a.m.

Spencer Levin

64

67

131

-9

11:13 a.m.

Bronson Burgoon

67

64

131

-9

11:37 a.m.

Martin Flores

64

67

131

-9

11:13 a.m.

Michael Feagles

65

66

131

-9

11:01 a.m.

Taylor Dickson

67

64

131

-9

11:37 a.m.

Billy Tom Sargent

65

66

131

-9

11:25 a.m.

Jay Card III

64

67

131

-9

11:01 a.m.

Patrick Welch

67

64

131

-9

11:25 a.m.

Brendon Jelley

67

64

131

-9

11:01 a.m.

Matt Atkins

64

67

131

-9

11:25 a.m.

Scott Gutschewski

65

67

132

-8

10:25 a.m.

Ryan Blaum

67

65

132

-8

10:49 a.m.

Rafael Campos

65

67

132

-8

10:49 a.m.

Willie Mack III

66

66

132

-8

10:37 a.m.

Danny Walker

66

66

132

-8

10:13 a.m.

Pierceson Coody

67

65

132

-8

10:49 a.m.

Clay Feagler

64

68

132

-8

10:01 a.m.

Joe Weiler

67

65

132

-8

10:13 a.m.

Ross Steelman

65

67

132

-8

10:37 a.m.

Blayne Barber

65

67

132

-8

10:13 a.m.

José Toledo

68

64

132

-8

10:37 a.m.

Brian Campbell

65

67

132

-8

10:25 a.m.

Brad Hopfinger

67

65

132

-8

10:01 a.m.

Jake Knapp

68

64

132

-8

10:25 a.m.

Jeremy Paul

66

67

133

-7

9:49 a.m.

Mason Andersen

64

69

133

-7

9:13 a.m.

Max Greyserman

66

67

133

-7

9:37 a.m.

Jamie Lovemark

67

66

133

-7

10:01 a.m.

Grant Booth

67

66

133

-7

9:01 a.m.

Joseph Winslow

69

64

133

-7

9:13 a.m.

Xinjun Zhang

67

66

133

-7

9:49 a.m.

Alex Chiarella

69

64

133

-7

9:25 a.m.

Peter Knade

68

65

133

-7

9:25 a.m.

Cristobal Del Solar

68

65

133

-7

9:37 a.m.

Fred Biondi

66

67

133

-7

9:37 a.m.

Trey Winstead

66

67

133

-7

9:13 a.m.

Dimi Papadatos

69

64

133

-7

9:49 a.m.

Andrew Kozan

68

65

133

-7

9:25 a.m.

Jeremy Gandon

67

67

134

-6

8:37 a.m.

Fabián Gómez

66

68

134

-6

8:49 a.m.

Dawson Armstrong

67

67

134

-6

8:25 a.m.

Cooper Musselman

68

66

134

-6

8:13 a.m.

John Augenstein

69

65

134

-6

8:25 a.m.

David Kocher

66

68

134

-6

9:01 a.m.

Shad Tuten

69

65

134

-6

8:37 a.m.

Chris Gotterup

66

68

134

-6

8:25 a.m.

Kaito Onishi

71

63

134

-6

8:49 a.m.

William Mouw

66

68

134

-6

8:37 a.m.

Daniel Miernicki

67

67

134

-6

8:49 a.m.

Joey Garber

70

64

134

-6

9:01 a.m.

Zach Bauchou

66

69

135

-5

7:15 a.m.

Wil Bateman

70

65

135

-5

7:37 a.m.

Hayden Springer

64

71

135

-5

7:15 a.m.

Ryan McCormick

68

67

135

-5

7:37 a.m.

Rob Oppenheim

67

68

135

-5

8:01 a.m.

Dan McCarthy

67

68

135

-5

8:01 a.m.

Alan Wagner

69

66

135

-5

7:49 a.m.

Alejandro Tosti

70

65

135

-5

7:25 a.m.

John VanDerLaan

69

66

135

-5

8:01 a.m.

Parker Coody

69

66

135

-5

7:25 a.m.

Quade Cummins

67

68

135

-5

7:37 a.m.

Louis Dobbelaar

67

68

135

-5

7:05 a.m.

A.J. Crouch

68

67

135

-5

8:13 a.m.

Brandon McIver

69

66

135

-5

7:49 a.m.

Davis Chatfield

70

65

135

-5

7:49 a.m.

Dodge Kemmer

64

71

135

-5

7:05 a.m.

Zack Fischer

67

68

135

-5

8:13 a.m.

Jared Wolfe

68

67

135

-5

7:25 a.m.

Missed cut

Player

R1

R2

Tot

Par

Tom Whitney

67

69

136

-4

Norman Xiong

67

69

136

-4

Noah Goodwin

68

68

136

-4

Grant Hirschman

68

68

136

-4

Kris Ventura

67

69

136

-4

Jake Staiano

66

70

136

-4

Mitchell Meissner

68

68

136

-4

Kevin Velo

69

67

136

-4

Logan McAllister

68

68

136

-4

Trent Phillips

70

66

136

-4

Ryan Elmore

67

69

136

-4

Julián Etulain

67

69

136

-4

Roberto Díaz

70

66

136

-4

Patrick Newcomb

67

69

136

-4

Jorge Fernández Valdés

65

71

136

-4

Chase Seiffert

69

67

136

-4

Wade Binfield

68

68

136

-4

Ollie Schniederjans

68

68

136

-4

Cole Hammer

69

68

137

-3

Jack Maguire

66

71

137

-3

Chase Parker

68

69

137

-3

Ian Holt

71

66

137

-3

Alistair Docherty

70

67

137

-3

Spencer Ralston

72

65

137

-3

Tripp Kinney

71

66

137

-3

Brett White

70

67

137

-3

Christian Salzer

65

72

137

-3

Brady Calkins

70

67

137

-3

William Holcomb

68

69

137

-3

Ryan Burnett

68

69

137

-3

Whee Kim

70

67

137

-3

Andrew Dorn

69

68

137

-3

Brett Drewitt

68

69

137

-3

Sam Saunders

70

68

138

-2

Jeffrey Kang

68

70

138

-2

T.K. Kim

69

69

138

-2

Martin Contini

71

67

138

-2

Blake McShea

70

68

138

-2

Andrew Yun

71

67

138

-2

Kevin Dougherty

69

70

139

-1

Max McGreevy

67

72

139

-1

Rico Hoey

70

69

139

-1

Bryson Nimmer

68

71

139

-1

Thomas Walsh

71

68

139

-1

Abel Gallegos

67

72

139

-1

Alex Scott

70

69

139

-1

Chris Naegel

70

69

139

-1

Paul Peterson

68

71

139

-1

Curtis Thompson

71

68

139

-1

Brian Davis

70

70

140

E

Trace Crowe

73

67

140

E

Jacob Bergeron

74

66

140

E

Wilson Furr

70

70

140

E

Alex Weiss

70

70

140

E

RJ Manke

70

70

140

E

Rowin Caron

69

71

140

E

Matt Ryan

69

71

140

E

Tag Ridings

68

72

140

E

Michael Gellerman

72

69

141

+1

Dalton Ward

73

68

141

+1

Logan McCracken

70

71

141

+1

Kyle Stanley

70

71

141

+1

Rhein Gibson

70

71

141

+1

Pontus Nyholm

72

69

141

+1

Ashton Van Horne

75

66

141

+1

Bo Van Pelt

71

70

141

+1

T.J. Vogel

65

76

141

+1

Jared Sawada

70

71

141

+1

Manav Shah

69

73

142

+2

Jorge Villar

74

68

142

+2

Cooper Schultz (a)

75

68

143

+3

Michael Mattiace

75

68

143

+3

Vince India

72

71

143

+3

Luke Long

73

71

144

+4

Daniel Chopra

75

73

148

+8

Tommy Gainey

67

—

67

WD

Joel Thelen

69

—

69

WD